1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to backup data storage. More particularly, the invention relates to a system and method for backing up data from a plurality of client computers to a server computer.
2. Description of the Related Art
Computer systems generally store various types of information, e.g., where the data is stored in files or databases. If a storage device on which the data is stored fails then the data may be lost. Thus, it is often desirable to backup the data stored on a computer system. In particular, some backup systems operate to backup data from a client computer to a backup server computer by transmitting the backup data from the client computer to the backup server computer through a network.
In some systems, multiple client computers may be coupled to the backup server computer, where each client computer backs up its respective data to or replicates its respective data on the backup server computer. If the backup server computer operates to backup the data from only one client computer at a time then the throughput of the target storage device may not be fully utilized. Thus, it may be desirable to enable multiple client computers to concurrently backup their respective data to the backup server computer. However, it can be very difficult to determine an optimal number of concurrent backups to allow. In particular, it is very difficult for human administrators to determine and configure a number of concurrent backups to allow on the backup server computer.